Page:The Journal of Classical and Sacred Philology, Volume 1, 1854.djvu/322

 312 Journal of Philology. I render then : " Since to men of experience I see that com- parisons also of their counsels are most in vogue," i.e. "experienced men lay their heads together most." Thus we get for fao-as its usual and proper meaning : we obtain force for the emphatic Kali we crown the whole passage with an apt and admirable sentiment. For observe the tenour of the speech from v. 31. The priest says to CEdipus, " We do not seek for aid, as deeming you the equal of the Gods, but as considering you the most skilful of men in dealing with all the events of life, ordinary and extraordinary. For it was you that relieved us from the oppres- sion of the Sphinx, and that without any hint or instruction from us : you are supposed to have been aided by divine inspiration. So also now we beg you to discover some resource for us, whether supplied by a god, or acquired from some other man ; and in this last suggestion there is nothing disparaging : for men of experience, like you, are not only the best counsellors, but also most accustomed to compare their counsels mutually, and there- fore most likely to have learnt something from their neighbours." 49, 50, OPXV^ ttjs a-rjs prjdapas pepvcopeda crravres t es opdov Ka ircarovres vorepov. I do not hesitate, with Wunder, to adopt the subjunctive Hffjivancda. (pray let us not remember), and it is surprising that Schneidewin should defend the optative pepvcopeda on so weak a ground as that the subjunctive sounds like a disrespectful menace. But can prjbapas be used with an optative ? My impression is in the negative. Wunder connects the participles as well as the genitive with the verb : " Let us not remember your reign, remember that we were," &c. This is a possible explanation ; but is it not simpler to take the words, "let us not remember your reign by the fact of our having been raised to a prosperous position, and depressed afterwards"? 62, to fxev yap vpatv aXyos (Is *v tpxerai pouov Kad' avrov Kovdtv' aXkov, 17 6* epfj "ty v Xl i^okiv re Kapk Kal <r opov ore vet. Wunder, following Elmsley, reads tv instead of tva. It were well if either scholar had told us how to construe the passage with that reading. I hold it certain that the accusative ovbiva aXKov does not depend upon Kara. Such phrases as Kaff avrov, Kaff cKaarov, eVi 7roXu, tnl ttXcIotoi/, and the like, have the nature of single